Miao ancestors lived in the "five streams" area in Qin and Han dynasties, that is, western Hunan and eastern Guizhou. In ancient books and records of China, there have been records of Miao ancestors more than 5,111 years ago, that is, clans and tribes called "Nan Man" from the Yellow River valley to the south of the middle reaches of the Yangtze River.

Population: 7,398,135

Distribution: It mainly lives in the southeast of Guizhou Province, Damiaoshan in Guangxi, Hainan Island and the border areas of Guizhou, Hunan, Hubei, Sichuan, Yunnan, Guangxi and other provinces.

Miao people have their own language, which can be divided into three dialects: Xiangxi, Qiandong and Sichuan, Guizhou and Yunnan. After 1956, a writing scheme in Latin alphabet was designed. Due to the long-term contacts between Miao and Han, a large number of Miao people are fluent in Chinese and use Chinese.

agriculture is dominant in Miao areas, supplemented by hunting. Miao people's arts and crafts such as flower picking, embroidery, brocade, batik, paper-cutting and handcrafting are magnificent and colorful, and they are well-known at home and abroad. Among them, the batik process of Miao nationality has a history of thousands of years. There are more than 131 kinds of Miao costumes, which can be compared with the costumes of any nation in the world. Miao nationality is a nation that can sing and dance well, especially for love songs and wine songs. Lusheng is the most representative musical instrument of Miao nationality.

custom

Miao people attach great importance to etiquette. When guests visit, they will kill chickens and ducks for hospitality. If they are distinguished guests from afar, the Miao people are used to inviting guests to drink horn wine first. When eating chicken, the head of the chicken should be given to the elderly among the guests, and the drumsticks should be given to the youngest guests. In some places, there is also the custom of dividing the hearts of chickens, that is, the oldest owner of the family uses chopsticks to give the hearts of chickens or ducks to the guests, but the guests can't eat them themselves, so they must divide the hearts of chickens equally among the old people present. If the guest drinks little and doesn't like to eat fat meat, it can explain the situation. If the host is not reluctant, but he is not satisfied with food and drink, he is regarded as looking down on the host.

marriage customs

glutinous rice is also an essential food for young men and women in the process of marriage and love. The Miao people in Chengbu, Hunan Province gave each other glutinous rice cakes painted with mandarin ducks as keepsakes. When a wedding is held, the bride and groom will drink a toast, and the officiating person will also invite the bride and groom to eat glutinous rice cakes with dragon and phoenix and dolls painted on them.

Eating Custom

In most areas, Miao people eat rice as their staple food. Fried Baba is the most common fried food. If you add some fresh meat and sauerkraut as stuffing, the taste will be more delicious.

most meat comes from livestock and poultry. Miao people in Sichuan and Yunnan like to eat dog meat, and there is a saying that "Miao's dog is Yi's wine". Besides animal oil, Miao's edible oil is mostly tea oil and vegetable oil. Pepper is the main condiment, and in some areas there is even a saying that "nothing can be done without pepper". There are many kinds of Miao dishes. The common vegetables are beans, melons, greens and radishes. Most Miao people are good at making bean products.

Miao people everywhere generally like to eat sour dishes, and sour soup is a must for every family. Sour soup is rice soup or tofu water, which is fermented in a crock for 3-5 days, and then can be used to cook fish and vegetables in cook the meat. The food preservation of Miao nationality generally adopts salting method, and vegetables, chickens, ducks, fish and meat all like to be salted into sour taste. Almost every Miao family has jars for curing food, which are collectively called acid jars.

Miao people have a long history of brewing, and they have a complete set of techniques from koji making, fermentation, distillation, blending and cellar storage. Camellia oleifera is the most common daily drink. Xiangxi Miao people also specially made a kind of scented tea. Sour soup is also a common drink.

Typical foods mainly include: Xueguan soup, Chili bone, Miaoxiang Guifeng soup, Miancaiba, insect tea, scented tea, mashed fish, sour soup fish and so on.

Festivals

In the past, Miao people believed in animism, worshiped nature and worshipped their ancestors. There are many festivals, besides traditional festivals and sacrificial festivals, there are also special festivals related to eating. Such as: eating duck festival, eating new festival, killing fish festival, picking tea festival, etc. In addition to preparing wine and meat, seasonal food is also necessary for festivals.

the year of Miao generally begins on the first day of the first month and lasts for three, five or fifteen days. Years ago, every household should prepare a rich annual food, in addition to killing pigs and sheep (cattle), it is also necessary to prepare enough glutinous rice wine. The New Year's dinner is rich, paying attention to "all seven colors are available" and "all five flavors are available", and using the best glutinous rice to make "Nian Ba". Banquet and give gifts to each other

Fish-killing festivals are mostly held by the river. Women bring rice, bacon, sausages and other food and wine. As long as they catch fish, they light a bonfire and cook the fish in a pot until they enjoy themselves.

"Drum Festival" is the biggest ritual activity among Miao people. Generally, it is a small sacrifice for seven years and a big sacrifice for thirteen years. It is held on the second day of the lunar calendar from October to November. At that time, a roebuck will be killed and Lusheng dance will be performed to honor the ancestors. Invite friends and relatives to get together when eating, in order to enhance feelings and family harmony.

Miao is an ancient and colorful nation, calling itself "Mu",

"Meng", "Damu" and "Daji". He said that there are several situations. First, he called "red seedlings", "flower seedlings", "white seedlings" and "black seedlings" based on the color of clothing. Second,

they are called "highland seedlings", "Bazhai seedlings" and "ginger

seedlings" based on the crops where they live or grow. Third, the rulers of the old days insulted them, such as "raw seedlings", "cooked seedlings" and "linen seedlings". After the founding of New China, it was collectively called "Miao". Miao people in Guangxi account for 5.5% of the national Miao population, and < P > 1% of the population in Guangxi, ranking fourth after Han, Zhuang and Yao in the population of all ethnic groups in Guangxi. The Miao people in China are mainly distributed in Guizhou and Hunan, and the Miao people in Guangxi mainly live in the northern, northwestern and western mountainous areas bordering Hunan, Guizhou and Yunnan. The biggest feature of Miao nationality is that it is rich in all kinds of wood and local products and maintains a splendid and simple national tradition.